Commentary on Mark (chapters 7–8)
Commentary on Mark
continued
Chapter 7
Mark 7:1
And the Pharisees and some of the scribes from Jerusalem gathered around him. And when they saw some of his disciples eating bread with unclean hands (that is, unwashed), they found fault. Oh how true is that confession of the Lord to the Father, because you have hidden these things from the wise and prudent, and revealed them to the little ones. The men of the region of Gennesaret, who seemed less learned, not only come themselves but also bring their sick; indeed, they carry them to the Lord so that they might deserve to touch even the fringe of his garment to be healed. Hence, they immediately obtain the reward of the desired healing. But indeed the Pharisees and scribes, who ought to have been the teachers of the people, come to the Lord not to hear the word, nor to seek a cure, but only to stir up debates, and they blame them for not washing their hands, in whose works, whatever is done by hands or other members of the body, nothing defiling of impurity could be found; whereas they ought to blame themselves more, who, having hands washed with water, bore a conscience defiled with malice. For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands often, holding to the tradition of the elders, and when they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they purify themselves.
Mark 7:4
It is a superstitious tradition of men to wash frequently before eating bread, once washed, and not to eat unless they baptize themselves from the market. But the doctrine of truth is necessary, which orders those who wish to participate with the bread of life descending from heaven to often cleanse their works with the washing of alms, tears, and other fruits of righteousness, so that they may be able to communicate with heavenly mysteries with a pure heart and body. It is necessary to purge the defilements that anyone has contracted from the cares of temporal business with the following diligence of good thoughts and acts, if he desires to enjoy the feasts of internal refreshment. But the Pharisees, taking the spiritual words of the prophets carnally, which commanded them concerning the chastisement of heart and works, saying: Wash yourselves, be clean, and be purified, you who bear the vessels of the Lord (Isa. I), these only observed the washing of the body. But Pharisees in vain, all Jews in vain, wash their hands, and are baptized from the market, as long as they despise being washed by the fountain of the Savior. In vain do they keep the baptisms of vessels, who neglect to cleanse the filth of their hearts and bodies: since it is certain that Moses and the prophets who ordered the vessels of the people of God to be either washed with water, or purged by fire, or sanctified with oil for whatever reason, did not command in this the cleansing of material things, but rather the chastisement and holiness of minds and works, and the salvation of souls.
Mark 7:5
And the Pharisees and the scribes questioned him: Why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with common hands? The stupidity of the Pharisees and scribes is astonishing. They argue with the Son of God, why he does not observe the traditions and precepts of men. The hands, that is, works, of course, not the hands of the body, but of the soul, must be washed, so that the word of God may be done in them. [Mark 7:9] -- And he said to them: Well do you make void the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition. He refutes the false accusation with a true reply. Since (he says) you neglect the commandments of the Lord for the sake of human tradition, why do you think my disciples deserve to be reproached for disregarding the commands of the elders, so that they may keep the decrees of God?
Mark 7:10
For Moses said: Honor your father and your mother. And he who speaks evil of father or mother, let him surely die. In Scripture, honor is not felt so much in greetings and the rendering of services as in alms and the giving of gifts. Honor (says the Apostle) widows who are truly widows (1 Tim. 5). Here honor is understood as a gift. And in another place: Elders who rule well are to be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in the word and teaching (Ibid.). And by this commandment, we are ordered not to muzzle the ox while it is treading out the grain, so that the worker is worthy of his wages (Ibid.).
Mark 7:11
But you say: If a man says to his father or mother, "Corban" (which means offering), whatever benefit you might have received from me, you no longer permit him to do anything for his father or mother. The Lord had commanded, considering the weaknesses, ages, or needs of parents, that children should honor their parents even by providing life's necessities. The Scribes and Pharisees, wishing to undermine this most provident law of God and to introduce impiety under the guise of piety, taught the wicked children that if anyone wishes to dedicate what ought to be offered to parents to God, who is the true Father, the offering to the Lord takes precedence over gifts to parents. Or certainly, the parents themselves, avoiding consecrated items to prevent committing sacrilege, would be impoverished; and thus, the offering of the children could under the guise of the temple and God flow into the profits of the priests. This terrible custom of the Pharisees arises from such a circumstance. Having many indebted persons unwilling to repay their loans, these persons transferred their debts to the priests, so that, once the money was collected, it would serve the temple's ministries and their uses. Furthermore, this may briefly be understood as: "Whatever gift is from me benefits you." He implies, you compel children to say to their parents: "Whatever gift I was to offer to God, I spend on your food, and it benefits you, O father and mother," so that they, fearing to accept what they saw dedicated to God, would prefer to lead a life of poverty rather than eat from consecrated things.
Mark 7:15
And calling the crowd again, he said to them: Listen to me, all of you, and understand: There is nothing outside a man that entering into him can defile him. But the things that come out of a man, those are what defile a man. The word "defile" properly belongs to the Scriptures, and is used in ordinary speech. The people of the Jews, boasting that they are part of God, call common the foods which all men use. For example: pork, oysters, hares, and such animals that do not split the hoof, nor chew the cud, nor are scaly among fishes. Hence it is written in the Acts of the Apostles: What God has sanctified, do not call common (Acts X). Therefore, that which is common, that is open to all men, and as if it is not a part of God, is called unclean. Nothing (he says) outside a man entering into him can defile him. But the things that come out of a man, those are what defile a man. A prudent reader may object and say: If what enters into the mouth does not defile a man, why do we not eat meat sacrificed to idols? And the Apostle writes: You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons (I Cor. X). It must therefore be known that the foods themselves, as creatures of God, are by themselves clean, but the invocation of idols and demons make them unclean.
Mark 7:17
And when he had entered into the house from the crowd, his disciples asked him about the parable. And he said to them: Are you also without understanding? What had been said openly, and was clear to hear, the apostles thought was spoken in a parable, and in a manifest matter they seek a mystical understanding. And they are reproved by the Lord for thinking that what was spoken plainly was said as a parable. From this we observe that it is a fault of the listener who wishes to understand clearly spoken matters obscurely or obscure matters clearly.
Mark 7:19
Do you not understand that everything entering from outside into a man cannot defile him because it does not enter his heart but his stomach, and is expelled into the latrine, purging all foods? All the passages of the Gospels among heretics and the perverse are full of scandals. And from this little statement, some accuse that the Lord, ignorant of physical disputation, thinks that all foods go into the stomach and are digested in the latrine, whereas the infused foods are immediately spread through the limbs, veins, and marrow of the nerves. Hence, we also see many who, due to a stomach defect, continually vomit, immediately expelling what they ingested after meals, and yet are corpulent because the more liquid food and drink spread through the limbs at first touch. But such men, in their desire to criticize another's lack of skill, show their own. Although the thinnest humor and liquid food, when it has been concocted and digested in the veins and limbs, descends to the lower parts through hidden pathways of the body, which the Greeks call πόρους, and goes into the latrine. He was saying, however, that what comes out of a man defiles the man. For from within, from the heart of men, evil thoughts proceed, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, and others. "From the heart," he says, "come evil thoughts. Therefore, the principal part of the soul, not according to Plato in the brain, but according to Christ in the heart, is.
And those are to be refuted from this assertion who think that thoughts are instilled by the devil and not born from one's own will. The devil can be an assistant and inciter of evil thoughts, but he cannot be an author. If, however, he, always lying in wait, inflames the light spark of our thoughts with his kindlings, we should not believe that he also scrutinizes the secrets of the heart, but judges from the body's condition and gestures what we are pondering inwardly. For example, if he sees us looking frequently at a beautiful woman, he understands that the heart is wounded by the dart of love.
Mark 7:24
And from there, rising, he went to the regions of Tyre and Sidon. Leaving behind the scribes and Pharisees, who were detractors, he crossed into the parts of Tyre and Sidon to cure the Tyrians and Sidonians. [Mark 7:24] -- And entering a house, he did not want anyone to know, but he could not be hidden. It is rightly asked how it is said that the Lord did not want anyone to know his journey, yet could not be hidden. For what is it that he could not do, who, even while placed among men temporally, invisibly arranged everything that happened outside inwardly with the Father? Or for what reason is he thought to have entered the regions of Tyre and Sidon, except to free the daughter of the Syrophoenician from a demon, and through the faith of the Gentile woman to refute the disbelief of the scribes and Pharisees? But it must be faithfully and piously believed that not at all did what he did not want happen to him in this matter, but that it was shown primarily in his good works which the faithful following his journey should wish to do. For upon entering the house, he commanded the disciples not to reveal to anyone in the unknown region who he was. Nonetheless, he himself made known this entrance to the Gentile woman and to whomever he wished among the wise, he himself kindled her heart with an invisible prompt to seek salvation from him, so that by her example they might learn to whom the grace of healing the sick should be conferred in the exhibition of miracles, to avoid, as much as possible, human glory and favor, yet not cease from the pious work of virtue, whenever these deeds were justly deserved by the faith of the good or necessarily compelled by the unbelief of the wicked.
Mark 7:24
And he could not, he said, remain hidden. For a woman, as soon as she heard about him, whose daughter had an unclean spirit, entered and fell at his feet. Now the woman was a Gentile, a Syrophoenician by birth. Typically, however, this Gentile woman, coming to the Lord with faith, represents the Church gathered from the Gentiles. She begs the Lord for her demon-possessed daughter, as for the people who do not yet believe, so that they too may be freed from the deceptions of the devil, she entreats the divine mercy. She, according to Matthew, went out from her borders, but in this Gospel, it is said that she entered to the Lord and fell at his feet, so that from both assertions it may be gathered that only those faithfully and rightly pray for the erring who abandon the dwellings of their former unbelief and transfer themselves with pious devotion into the house of the Lord, namely the Church.
Mark 7:26
And she asked, he said, him to cast out the demon from her daughter. He said to her: Let the children be filled first. As if he was speaking more clearly: It remains that even you who are of the Gentiles will attain salvation; but first it is necessary that the Jews, who by merit of the ancient election are accustomed to be called by the name of the children of God, be filled with the heavenly bread, and thus finally the food of life be given to the Gentiles.
Mark 7:27
For it is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs. And she answered and said to him: Yes, Lord. For even the little dogs eat the crumbs that fall from the children’s table. The wondrous faith, patience, and humility of the Church under the persona of the Canaanite woman is being proclaimed. Faith, by which she believed that her daughter could be healed. Patience, by which she perseveres in prayers despite being ignored so many times (as Matthew writes). Humility, by which she compares herself not to dogs but to little dogs. She says, I know I do not deserve the children’s bread, nor can I take whole meals, nor sit at the table with the father; but I am content with the leftover scraps of the little dogs, so that by the humility of the crumbs I may come to the greatness of the whole bread. Wondrous reversal of things, once Israel was the son, not dogs, the order of names is changed due to the diversity of faith. Concerning them it is later said: Many dogs have surrounded me (Psalm 21). And: Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision (Philippians 3). Concerning us, turned from the barking of blasphemous contradiction to the grace of piety, he himself says elsewhere: And I have other sheep that are not of this fold, I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice (John 10).
It must be noted indeed that the believing woman speaks mystically, because little dogs under the table eat from the children's crumbs. The table is indeed Holy Scripture, which provides us the bread of life. Thus the Church says from here: You prepared a table before me in the presence of my enemies (Psalm 22). The children's crumbs are the inner mysteries of the Scriptures, with which the hearts of the humble are usually refreshed. About which elsewhere it is promised to the holy Church, the Prophet saying of the Lord: He makes peace in your borders, and fills you with the finest of the wheat (Psalm 147). Therefore the little dogs do not eat crusts, but crumbs of the children's bread, because those converted to the faith who were despised among the nations seek not the surface of the letter in the Scriptures, but the marrow of spiritual senses by which they might be able to progress in good deeds. And this under the table of the masters, while humbly submitted to the word of the sacred discourse, they subject all their heart and body to fulfilling what is commanded, so that by means of the merit of due humility they may be raised to hope for the rewards promised by the Lord in heaven.
Mark 7:29
And he said to her: For this saying, go. The demon has gone out of your daughter. Because of the humble and faithful saying of the mother, the demon left her daughter. Here is given an example of catechizing and baptizing infants, because evidently through the faith and confession of the parents in baptism, infants are freed from the devil, who are not yet able to know or do anything good or evil by themselves. [Mark 7:31] -- And again, leaving the borders of Tyre, he came through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee, through the midst of the borders of Decapolis. Decapolis is (as the name itself proves) a region of ten cities across the Jordan to the East around Hippos and Pella and Gadara, opposite Galilee. Therefore, it is said that the Lord came to the Sea of Galilee, through the midst of the borders of Decapolis, which does not mean that he entered the very borders of Decapolis. For it is not said that he crossed over the sea, but rather that he came up to the sea, and reached the place which looked toward the midst of the borders of Decapolis far across the sea.
Mark 7:32
And they bring to him a deaf and mute man; and they begged him to lay his hand on him. The deaf and mute man is one who neither has ears for hearing the words of God, nor opens his mouth for speaking, such as those who have already learned to speak and hear the divine words through long practice must needs be offered to the Lord for healing, so that those whom human frailty cannot heal, he himself by the right hand of his grace may save.
Mark 7:33
And taking him aside from the crowd, He put His fingers into his ears. The first door of salvation is for the infirm man to be taken aside from the crowd by the Lord. For He takes the infirm man aside from the crowd when, illuminating the mind weakened by sins through the visit of His mercy, He calls him away from the customary manners of human conversation, and provokes him to follow the paths of His commandments. He puts His fingers into his ears when, through the gifts of the Holy Spirit, He opens the ears of the heart to understand and receive the words of salvation. For the Lord Himself testifies that the Spirit is called the finger of God, when He says to the Jews: “But if I cast out devils by the finger of God, by whom do your sons cast them out?” (Luke 11:20). Another Evangelist explains this saying: “But if I cast out devils by the Spirit of God” (Matthew 12:28). By this same finger, the magicians in Egypt were overcome by Moses, saying: "This is the finger of God” (Exodus 8:19); and the law was written on stone tablets because, through the gift of the Holy Spirit, we are both defended from the snares of men or evil spirits, and are taught the knowledge of God’s will. Therefore, the fingers of God inserted into the ears of him who needed healing are the gifts of the Holy Spirit, by which He reveals to the hearts that had deviated from the path of truth the understanding and learning of the knowledge of salvation. And because the light of truth once known should be followed by confession, it is aptly added:
Mark 7:33
And spitting, he touched his tongue. The Lord indeed touches the tongue of the sick with spittle, when he instructs the mouths of catechumens towards the confession of faith. The spittle of the Lord signifies the taste of wisdom, which, as testified by the wise man, speaks: "I came from the mouth of the Most High, the firstborn" (Eccli. XXIV). And hence elsewhere, when his spittle mixed with earth, the man born blind was illuminated. The spittle which comes from the head of the Lord signifies his divine nature which is from God; the portion of earth with which the spittle is mixed signifies the human nature taken from men. And through the medicine composed of his spittle and earth, he opened the eyes of the man born blind, because the human race is released from the innate darkness of their errors through the confession of his two natures. Thus, the Lord, spitting, touches the tongue of the mute to enable him to speak, when he instructs mouths long silent to bring forth words of wisdom by the contact of his piety. Hence it is aptly added:
Mark 7:34
And looking up to heaven, he sighed; and said to him: Effeta, which is to say, Be opened. He looked up to heaven to teach that speech to the mute, hearing to the deaf, and healing to all infirmities, should be sought from there. He sighed, not because it was necessary for him to ask anything from the Father with a sigh, he who with the Father grants all things to those who ask, but to give us an example of sighing, when we invoke the aid of heavenly piety for our sins or those of our neighbors. But when he says: Effeta, that is, be opened, it pertains specifically to the ears. For the ears are to be opened for hearing, while the tongue needs to be freed from the bonds of its slowness to be able to speak; and hence it is added:
Mark 7:35
And immediately his ears were opened, and the bond of his tongue was loosed, and he began to speak correctly. Here, both natures of the one and same mediator between God and humans are clearly distinct. For, ascending into heaven as a man, he sighed to pray to God, but soon with one word, as divinely powerful in majesty, he healed. Rightly, it is said of him, whose ears the Lord opened, and whose tongue's bond he loosed, because he spoke correctly. For only he speaks correctly, whether confessing God or preaching to others, whose hearing divine grace unlocks so that he can listen to and obey heavenly commands, and whose tongue the Lord instructs in speaking by the touch of wisdom, which he himself is. Such a one can rightly say with the Psalmist: Lord, you will open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise (Psalm 50). And with Isaiah: The Lord has given me an instructed tongue, to know how to sustain the weary with a word. He wakens me morning by morning; he wakens my ear to listen like one being instructed (Isaiah 50).
Mark 7:36
And he commanded them not to tell anyone. But the more he commanded them, the more they proclaimed it, and they were exceedingly astonished, saying: He has done all things well, he makes the deaf hear, and the mute speak. If he knew they would proclaim it even more as he had the present and future wills of humans known, why then did he command this except to show the lazy how much more fervently and eagerly they ought to preach, whom he commands to preach when those who were forbidden could not keep silent?
Chapter 8
Mark 8:1
In those days, when again there was a great crowd and they had nothing to eat, He called His disciples and said to them, "I have compassion on the crowd, because they have now been with me for three days and have nothing to eat, etc. In this reading, we must consider in the one and same Redeemer our the distinct operation of divinity and humanity; and the error of Eutyches, who presumes to teach only one operation in Christ, must be thoroughly expelled from Christian borders. For who does not see that the fact that the Lord has compassion on the crowd, lest they faint either from hunger or the labor of a long journey, is an affection and compassion of human frailty? But that He fed four thousand men with seven loaves and a few small fish is the work of divine power? Mystically, however, this miracle signifies that we cannot otherwise pass safely through the path of this present world unless the grace of our Redeemer refreshes us with the nourishment of His word. Typologically, the difference between this feeding and that of the five loaves and two fishes is that there the letter of the Old Testament, full of spiritual grace, was signified; here, however, the truth and grace of the New Testament is shown to be ministered to the faithful.
Surely, both feedings occurred on a mountain, as the narration of other evangelists declares, because the rightly understood Scriptures of both Testaments command us to the height of heavenly precepts and rewards, and both proclaim in a harmonious voice the height of Christ, who is the mountain of the house of the Lord at the summit of the mountains. For He who exalts the city or house of the Lord built upon Himself, that is, the Church, in the height of good works and makes it manifest to all nations, He refreshes it, abstracted from lowly pleasures, with the bread of heaven, and kindles it to the appetite for supernal sweetness by giving the pledge of spiritual food.
Mark 8:2
I have compassion on the crowd, he said, because they have already been with me for three days and have nothing to eat. And if I send them away hungry to their homes, they will faint on the way. Why the crowd waited for the Lord for three days, Matthew explains more fully, who says: And when he went up on the mountain, he sat there. And large crowds came to him, bringing with them the mute, the blind, the lame, the crippled, and many others, and they put them at his feet, and he healed them (Matt. XV). Therefore, the crowd waited for the Lord for three days because of the healing of their sick, just as the elect, illuminated by faith in the Holy Trinity, continually beseech the Lord with perseverance for the sins of their own and their neighbors', namely, the sicknesses of the soul. Likewise, the crowd waits for the Lord for three days when a multitude of the faithful, turning away from the sins they have committed through repentance, turn to the Lord in deeds, in speech, and in thought. The Lord does not want to send them away hungry to their homes, lest they faint on the way, because converted sinners in the way of present life faint if they are sent away in their conscience without the nourishment of holy doctrine. Therefore, lest they grow weary in the journey of this pilgrimage, they must be nourished with sacred admonition. But we must deeply ponder the pious sentence that proceeded from the mouth of truth, which says:
Mark 8:3
Some of them have come from afar. For there is one who, having experienced no deceit and no corruptions of the flesh, hastened to the service of the Almighty God. He did not come from afar, because through incorruption and innocence he was near. Another, tainted by no impurity, no disgrace, but having experienced only marriage, turned to spiritual ministry. Neither did he come from afar, because though he used the granted union, he did not err through illicit means. However, others return to repentance and turn to the service of the Almighty God after deeds of the flesh, others after false testimonies, others after thefts committed, others after inflicted injuries and violence, others after perpetrated murders. These, indeed, come to the Lord from afar. For the more someone has erred in wicked deeds, the further he has retreated from the Almighty Lord. Therefore, let nourishment be given also to those who come from afar, because repentant sinners must be given the foods of holy teachings, so that they restore their strength in God, which they lost in their vices. Similarly, Jews who believed in Christ came to Him from nearby, because they were instructed about Him by the writings of the Law and the Prophets. Believers from the Gentiles, indeed, came from afar to Christ, because they were not forewarned of His faith by any monuments of the holy pages.
Mark 8:5
And he asked them: How many loaves do you have? They said: Seven. The seven loaves are well placed in the mystery of the New Testament, in which the septiform grace of the Holy Spirit, more fully revealed to all the faithful, is both believed in and given. They are not found to be of barley, like those five loaves, with which five thousand men were fed, lest again, as in the law, the vital food of the soul be hidden by bodily sacraments. For the marrow of barley is tightly covered by a very tenacious husk. [Mark 8:6] -- And he commanded the crowd to recline on the ground. Earlier, during the feeding of the five loaves, the crowd reclined on the green grass; now, when they are to be fed with seven loaves, they are commanded to recline on the ground, because through the Scripture of the law we are ordered to tread and suppress the desires of the flesh. For all flesh is grass, and all its glory like the flower of grass (I Peter I). However, in the New Testament, we are commanded to forsake even the very land and temporal goods. Or certainly because the mountain on which the crowd was fed with the Lord's loaves signifies (as we said above) the height of our Redeemer, there they are fed on grass, here on the ground. For there the loftiness of Christ is covered because of carnal men and earthly Jerusalem, with carnal hope and desire; but here, with all carnal desire removed, it contained the guests of the New Testament, the foundation of lasting hope, like the solidity of the mountain itself, with no grass interposed.
Mark 8:6
And taking the seven loaves, giving thanks, he broke them and gave to his disciples to set before the crowd. The Lord, taking the loaves, gave them to his disciples so that they might distribute them to the crowd, because, bestowing the spiritual gifts of knowledge upon the apostles, he wanted the nourishment of life to be distributed through their ministry to his Church throughout the world. However, the breaking of the loaves which he gave to his disciples signifies the opening of the sacraments, by which the world was to be nourished unto eternal salvation. For when the Lord himself says: And no one knows the Son except the Father, nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal (Matt. 11), what did he show us except that the bread of life was to be opened to us through him, when we could not penetrate it by ourselves? The prophet, lamenting the pitiable hunger of some, said: The children asked for bread, but no one broke it for them (Lam. 4). Which is to say in other words: The unlearned sought the food of the word of God, to be strengthened and restored to the virtue of good works, but, with teachers lacking, there was no one to reveal the secrets of the Scriptures to them and to instruct them in the path of truth. But taking the loaves to break, the Lord gives thanks, to show how much he rejoices over the salvation of the human race, and to teach us always to give thanks to God when, either with earthly bread for the body or with heavenly grace from above granted, we are refreshed.
Mark 8:7
And they had some small fishes, and he blessed them and ordered them to be set before them. If in the seven loaves is signified the Scripture of the New Testament, in the reading of which we find internal feasts for the mind through the grace of the Holy Spirit, what do we accept in the small fishes which the Lord blessed and likewise ordered to be set before the crowd, except the saints of that time, when the same Scripture was composed, or whose faith, life, and sufferings that very Scripture contains? Who, having been rescued from the turbulent waves of this world and consecrated by divine blessing, have provided us with internal refreshment, so that we do not fail in the passing journey of this world, by the example of their life or death.
Mark 8:8
And they ate and were satisfied. They eat of the Lord's loaves and fishes, and are satisfied, those who, hearing the words of God and observing examples, hasten to be stirred and to rise to the advancement of a more correct life through these things. To whom the saying of the Psalmist aptly fits: The poor shall eat and be satisfied, and those who seek him shall praise the Lord. Their hearts shall live forever and ever (Psalm XXI). Which is plainly to say: The humble shall hear the word of God and do it, and to the praise not of themselves, but of the supreme giver, they shall refer all the good things they perform. Hence deservedly they shall reach the eternal life of the inner man, being satisfied with the bread of life. To whom, on the contrary, it is reproached through the prophet: You have eaten and are not satisfied. For they eat and are not satisfied, who taste the bread of the word of God by hearing it, but by not doing what they hear, they receive nothing of the internal sweetness by which their hearts may be confirmed in the memory of the mind.
Mark 8:8
And they took up the fragments that were left, seven baskets full. The apostles took up what was left over after the crowds were fed, and they filled seven baskets, because the higher precepts of perfection, or rather exhortations and counsels, cannot be reached by the general multitude of the faithful by keeping and fulfilling them. The execution of these properly pertains to those who, filled with a greater grace of the Holy Spirit, transcend the general conversion of the people of God in the sublimity of mind and work. To such ones it is said: "If you want to be perfect, go, sell all that you have" (Matthew 19), etc. Hence it is fittingly that the baskets in which the fragments of the Lord's food were stored are mentioned as being seven due to the sevenfold grace of the spirit. For baskets are usually woven from rush and palm leaves, and they are rightly placed as a symbol of the saints. For the rush is accustomed to grow above the waters, while the palm adorns the victorious hand. And the chosen ones are rightly compared to the vessels made of rushes, as they place the root of the heart in the very source of life, lest it wither from the love of eternity. They are also likened to those woven from palm leaves, as they retain in their pure heart the memory of the eternal reward. And it is fittingly narrated that although the crowd could not contain the remnants of the Lord's meal, it is said to have eaten and been satisfied. For there are some who, even if they cannot leave all their possessions, nor fulfill what is said of virgins: "He who can accept this, let him accept it" (Matthew 19), and other such things, are still filled with righteousness when they hunger and thirst, and by hearing the commandments of God's law, they reach eternal life.
Mark 8:9
Now those who ate were about four thousand, and He sent them away. Well, four thousand, that even in the number itself they might show they were fed with evangelical food. [Mark 8:10] -- And immediately getting into the boat with His disciples, He came to the region of Dalmanutha. For in Matthew we read: "And after sending away the crowd, He got into the boat and came to the region of Magadan" (Matthew 15). It is not to be doubted that it is the same place under either name. For many Codices do not have, even according to Mark, except Magadan.
Mark 8:11
And the Pharisees went out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, tempting Him. Thus they seek a sign, as if what they had seen were not signs. But what they seek is shown when it is said: Seeking from Him a sign from heaven. Either they desired fire to come down from above in the manner of Elijah, or like Samuel in the summer season, they wished for the thunder to roar, the lightning to flash, and rains to fall, as if they could not also slander those and say that they happened from hidden and various passions of the air. But you who slander what you see with your eyes, hold with your hands, feel with utility, what will you do about those things which come from heaven? Certainly, you will answer that magicians in Egypt also performed many signs from heaven. Or surely they seek a sign from heaven, so that He who fed many thousands of people with a few loaves would now, in imitation of Moses with manna sent from heaven and scattered everywhere, sustain the whole people for a long time. Which we read in the Gospel of John that after the eating of the loaves, the crowds sought from Him, saying: What sign then do you do so that we may see and believe you? What do you work? Our fathers ate manna in the desert (John 6), as it is written: He gave them bread from heaven to eat (Ibid.).
Mark 8:12
And sighing deeply in spirit, he said, "Why does this generation seek a sign? Truly, I say to you, if a sign will be given to this generation. He, who above thanked the crowd believing for heavenly benefit to be restored, now sighed and was saddened over the foolish petition of the Pharisees who did not believe and tempted, because truly bearing the nature of man, with real feelings of human nature, just as he rejoices over the salvation of men, so too he grieves and sighs over their errors. Hence also elsewhere, when many were led to salvation through the preaching of the apostles, it is written about him: "In that very hour he rejoiced in the Holy Spirit, and said: 'I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and prudent, and have revealed them to little children'" (Luke 10). And when he was about to rebuke Judas' deed, he was troubled in spirit, as John writes, and he testified, and said: "Truly, truly, I say to you, that one of you will betray me" (John 13). But what he says, "If a sign will be given to this generation," means it will not be given, according to that in the Psalm: "Once I have sworn by my holiness; I will not lie to David" (Psalm 89), that is, I will not lie to David. Hence Saint Augustine, speaking of the harmony of the evangelists, bears witness that it is thus written in Mark:
"And no sign will be given to it. Therefore, no sign will be given to that generation, that is, to those tempting the Lord and rejecting his words. Certainly a sign such as the tempters were seeking, this is to say, from heaven. Nevertheless, many heavenly signs he gave them on earth. Besides, to the generation seeking the gift, requiring the face of the God of Jacob, he showed a sign from heaven, when, with the apostles watching, he ascended into heaven, when, with the Spirit sent from above, he filled the primitive Church, when at the imposition of the hands of the apostles in Samaria, Caesarea, Ephesus, and many other cities and places, he ministered the grace of the Holy Spirit to the believers from heaven.
Mark 8:13
And dismissing them, he ascended the boat again and went across the strait. And they forgot to take bread, and they had nothing with them on the boat except one loaf. Someone may ask and say how they did not have bread, who, immediately after filling seven baskets, ascended the boat, and came to the borders of Magedan, and there heard the sailors that they should beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees. But Scripture testifies that they forgot to take them with them. However, that they forgot to take provisions with them before they were about to sail across the strait indicates how little they cared for the flesh in other respects, for whom the very necessity of replenishing the body, which naturally exists in all mortals, had escaped their minds due to their attention to following the Lord. But the one loaf they had with them on the boat mystically signifies the bread of life itself, namely the Lord and Savior. Because they were always inwardly refreshed in heart by His love, they cared less for the earthly bread with which the body is usually fed.
Mark 8:15
And he was instructing them, saying: See and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod. The leaven of the Pharisees is to place the decrees of divine law below human traditions, or certainly to preach the law in words while opposing it in deeds. Their leaven is to test the Lord, neither believing in His teachings nor in His works, but mocking and asking for other things in which they could believe. The leaven of Herod is adultery, homicide, rashness in swearing, false pretenses of religion, and what is the head and origin of all crimes, hatred and persecution against Christ and His precursor and first proclaimer of the heavenly kingdom. From which leaven of either, even the Apostle, not prohibiting, says: Therefore let us celebrate not with the old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth (I Cor. V).
Mark 8:16
And they reasoned among themselves, saying: We have no bread. Which knowing, Jesus said to them: Why do you reason because you have no bread? Do you not yet understand or comprehend? Is your heart still hardened? Having eyes, do you not see, and having ears, do you not hear, nor remember when I broke the five loaves among five thousand, and how many baskets full of fragments you took up? etc. Because of the command which the Savior had given, saying: Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod, he teaches them what the five loaves and the seven, or the small fish, mean, and the five thousand men and the four thousand who were fed in the wilderness. Though the greatness of the signs is clear, yet something else is shown by spiritual understanding. For if the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees and the leaven of Herod signify not physical bread but perverse traditions and heretical doctrines, why should not the food with which the people of God were fed signify true and complete doctrine? This kind of leaven, which must be avoided by all means, Marcion and Valentinus and all heretics have had. Leaven has this power, that if it be mixed with flour, what seemed small grows larger and attracts the whole mixture to its taste. Likewise, heretical doctrine, if it casts even a small spark into your heart, in a short time will grow into a huge flame and draw the whole possession of a man to itself. This is what the Apostle also speaks of: A little leaven corrupts the whole mass (Gal. V).
Mark 8:22
And they came to Bethsaida, and they brought to him a blind man, and begged him to touch him. All the diseases healed by the Lord are signs of the spiritual diseases by which the soul draws near to eternal death through sin. For just as in the deaf and mute healed by the Lord the restoration of the mind is implied of those who neither knew how to hear the word of God nor to speak, and soon in the feeding of the hungry crowd who had followed the Lord that sweetness is foreshadowed with which he usually feeds the hearts of those who love and seek him, so in this blind man gradually healed by the Lord the enlightenment of the foolish hearts, and those straying far from the path of truth is designated. They begged him to touch him, knowing that the touch of the Lord could cleanse the leper, and also could illuminate the blind. But we touch the Lord when we cling to him with whole-hearted and sincere faith. Indeed, we learn that his touch is most beneficial to us by the example of the woman who in happy boldness touched the hem of his garment. The Lord touches us when he illuminates our mind with the breath of his spirit, and kindles in us the recognition of our own weakness and the pursuit of good action.
Mark 8:23
And taking the blind man's hand, he led him out of the village. He took the blind man's hand to strengthen him for the performance of good work which he had not known due to the prolonged darkness of his heart. He led him out of the village to separate him from ordinary life, so that, freed from distractions, he might more freely seek with a diligent heart the will of his creator, by which he might merit to be enlightened. For whoever desires to see the light of eternity must always follow, not the examples of the crowds, but the guidance of his redeemer.
Mark 8:23
And spitting on his eyes, and laying his hands on him, he asked him if he saw anything. And looking up, he said, "I see men, for I see them like trees, walking. Then again he laid his hands on his eyes, and he began to see and was restored so that he saw everything clearly. Therefore, the Lord healed this man gradually and not immediately at once, though he could have healed him with a single word if he wished, to show the magnitude of human blindness, which usually comes to the light of divine vision gradually and through certain stages of progress, or to give us frequent indications of His grace, through which each of our increments towards perfection are aided so that they can progress and not fall short. It has often been said that the spittle of the Lord's mouth signifies the grace of His spirit. Concerning the touch of His hands, which insinuate the power of His assistance, there is no doubt. For spittle proceeds internally from the head of the Lord; the hands, however, are members placed on the exterior of the body. Thus, the Lord, spitting on the eyes of the blind man, lays His hands on him so that he may see, because He cleansed the blindness of the human race both through the invisible gifts of divine compassion and through the outwardly manifested sacraments of assumed humanity.
At first, the one who was being healed saw men as trees walking, that is, indeed seeing the form of bodies among the shadows but unable to discern any features of the limbs with his vision still dim, just as densely grown trees appear to those looking from afar or certainly in dim light, so that it is not easy to distinguish whether it is a tree or a man. Because undoubtedly, the first entrance into virtue for everyone is to observe the life and morals of other men, so that whatever good he sees anywhere, he may imitate, and whatever evil, he may avoid and detest. But whoever is so foolish and depressed by the darkness of a long time that he still cannot distinguish between good and evil, faith and perfidy, sincere works of piety and the simulation of justice, sees men walking like trees, because he sees the actions of the multitude without the light of discretion. And what remains for such people, except that divine favor, which granted him the care of observing man, may also confer upon him the gift of discerning which way of life among men is to be followed, whose teaching should be heeded? Hence, it is aptly said that with the second laying on of His hands, the Lord restored clear sight to him.
For he indeed sees everything clearly who was once blind, when one who deserved to be inwardly illuminated has clearly learned how to believe, how to live, and what rewards for the faith of truth and the practice of justice are to be hoped for in the future.
Mark 8:26
And he sent him to his home, saying: Go to your home: and if you enter the village, say to no one. That He ordered him to go to his home mystically admonishes all who are enlightened by the knowledge of truth to return to their hearts and consider with anxious mind how much has been granted to them, and responding to the benefits conferred upon them with the worthy execution of deeds. That He commanded him to cover his healing with silence, as He did for many others whom He healed, provides an example to His followers not to seek the favor of the crowd for their miraculous deeds, but to be content to please only divine eyes, where the reward for works remains. [Mark 8:27] -- And Jesus and His disciples went out to the village of Caesarea Philippi. This Philip is the brother of Herod, of whom we spoke before, tetrarch of the regions of Ituraea and Trachonitis, who in honor of Tiberius Caesar named Caesarea Philippi, which is now called Paneas, and it is in the province of Phoenicia; imitating Herod his father, who in honor of Augustus Caesar named Caesarea, which was previously called Tower of Straton, and built Libyad beyond the Jordan in the name of his daughter. This place is Caesarea Philippi, where the Jordan arises at the roots of Lebanon, and it has two sources, one named Jor, and the other Dan, which mixed together create the name Jordan.
Mark 8:27
And he questioned his disciples along the way, saying: Who do men say that I am? They answered him, saying: Some say John the Baptist; others, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets. The Lord rightly, intending to test the faith of the disciples, first inquires about people's opinion, lest their confession seem founded not on the recognition of truth but on the opinion of the crowd, and lest they be thought to believe not from what they have learned, but to hesitate like Herod from what they have heard. Therefore, to Peter confessing him as Christ, according to Matthew, he says: Because flesh and blood did not reveal it to you (Matthew 16), that is, human teaching did not teach you the truth of faith. Those who hold a different opinion about the Lord are also rightly noted by the name of men. For those who faithfully and devoutly recognize the truth of his power deserve not at all to be called men, but gods. The Lord shows that the apostles were such as these with his second question. For he continues:
Mark 8:29
Then he says to them: But who do you say that I am? Note, prudent reader, from the following text that the apostles are not at all called men, but gods. For when he had said: Who do men say I am, he added: But who do you say that I am? To them who are men giving human opinions, he says: But you, who are gods, who do you think I am? [Mark 8:29] -- Peter answered, saying: You are the Christ. Although the other apostles knew, Peter responded before the others. He encompassed everything, expressing both nature and name, in which is the summit of virtues. Do we indeed discuss questions about the generation of God? When Paul indicated knowing nothing except Christ Jesus, and him crucified, and Peter thought nothing more than that Christ should be confessed as the Son of God, do we examine with human frailty when and how he was born, and how great he is? Therefore, the end of my faith is Christ, the end of faith is the Son. I am not permitted to know the sequence of the generation, but I am not permitted to be ignorant of the faith of the generation.
Mark 8:30
And he warned them not to tell anyone about him. And he began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, etc. For this reason, he did not want to be proclaimed before his passion and resurrection, so that afterward, when the sacrament of his blood was completed, he could more appropriately say to the apostles: "Go and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit." Because it would not benefit to preach him publicly, and to reveal his majesty to the people, whom in a short while they would see scourged and crucified, suffering many things by the elders, scribes, and the chief priests. And note that he who must suffer many things and be killed, and rise again, is called the Son of Man, because, although Christ suffered in the flesh, he remained divinely impassible.
Mark 8:32
And Peter, taking him aside, began to rebuke him. Matthew explains more clearly how he rebuked him, saying: "And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying: 'God forbid, Lord, this shall never happen to you' (Matt. XVI). We have often said that Peter was of excessive fervor and had the greatest love for the Lord Savior. Therefore, after his confession in which he said, 'You are the Christ, the Son of the living God,' and the reward from the Savior where he heard according to Matthew: 'Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven' (Matt. XVI), he suddenly hears from the Lord that he must go to Jerusalem, and there suffer many things from the elders, scribes, and chief priests, and be killed, and on the third day rise again: he does not want to see his confession destroyed, nor does he think it possible that the Son of God could be killed; and he took him into his affection, or led him aside separately, so that he would not seem to argue with the teacher in the presence of the other disciples. And he began to rebuke him with the affection of love, and wishing to say: "God forbid, Lord," or (as it is better translated in Greek), "Be merciful to yourself, Lord, this shall not happen to you;" that is, it cannot happen, nor can my ears receive that the Son of God is to be killed.
Mark 8:33
When he had turned and saw his disciples, he rebuked Peter, saying: Go behind me, Satan. Satan is interpreted as adversary or contrary. Because you speak contrary (he said) to my will, you should be called adversary. Many think that it was not Peter who was corrected, but the adversarial spirit that suggested these things to the apostle to say. But to me, an apostolic error, arising from the affection of piety, will never seem to be the incentive of the devil. Go, Satan, is said to the devil: Go behind me. Peter hears: Go behind me, that is, follow my judgment. [Mark 8:33] -- For you are not mindful of the things of God, but of the things of men. It is of my will, and of the Father's, whose will I have come to do, that I should die for the salvation of men. Considering only your will, you do not wish the grain of wheat to fall into the ground, that it might bring forth much fruit.
Mark 8:34
And having called the crowd with his disciples, he said to them, "If anyone wishes to follow me, let him deny himself, etc. After showing his disciples the mystery of his passion and resurrection, he urges them together with the crowd to follow the example of his passion. And to all who suffer tribulation for his sake, he promises future salvation of their souls, but not to all, rather to the more perfect: how much he was to suffer, and that he would rise from the dead, he revealed. Here he established the form of teaching for the ministers of the word, so that, considering the capacity of their listeners, they might remember to instruct each one according to their ability, and not entrust deeper mysteries than they can comprehend to weak listeners. "If anyone wishes" (he says) "to follow me, let him deny himself. Now we deny ourselves when we avoid what we were through our former way of life and strive for that to which we are called through renewal. Let us consider how Paul had denied himself, who said, "And the life I now live, I live not by my own power” (Galatians 2). For that fierce persecutor had died and the pious preacher had begun to live. For if it were he, he would certainly not be pious. But let him who denies living by his own power, say whence it comes that he proclaims sacred words through the teaching of truth. Immediately he adds, "But Christ lives in me" (Ibid.).
As if to say openly: Indeed, I am dead to myself, for I do not live carnally; yet I am not essentially dead, for I live spiritually in Christ. Let, therefore, Truth say, let it say, "If anyone wishes to follow me, let him deny himself. For unless someone withdraws from himself, he does not approach the one who is above him. Nor can he grasp what is beyond himself if he does not know how to mortify what is within him. But now, he who denies himself from vices must seek virtues in which he may grow. For when it is said, "If anyone wishes to follow me, let him deny himself," it immediately adds:
Mark 8:34
And let him take up his cross and follow me. For indeed, the cross is taken up in two ways: either through the affliction of the body by abstinence, or through the affliction of the soul by compassion for one's neighbor. Let us consider how Paul bore his cross in both ways, who said: "I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified" (I Cor. IX). Behold, in the affliction of the body we heard the cross of the flesh; now, in the compassion for one's neighbor, let us hear the cross of the mind. He says: "Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to stumble, and I do not burn?" (II Cor. XI) Indeed, a perfect preacher, to give an example of abstinence, carried the cross in the body. And because he bore the sufferings of others in himself, he carried the cross in his heart.
Mark 8:35
For whoever wants to save their soul will lose it. But whoever loses their soul for my sake and the gospel will save it. Thus it is said to the faithful: Whoever wants to save their soul will lose it. But whoever loses their soul for my sake and the gospel will save it. As if it were said to a farmer: If you save the grain, you lose it; if you sow it, you renew it. For who does not know that when grain is sown, it disappears from sight, perishing in the ground? But from where it rots in the dust, it springs forth in renewal. Because the holy Church has different times of persecution and peace, our Redeemer designated those times in his teachings. For in times of persecution, the soul is to be laid down. But in times of peace, earthly desires, which can dominate more, are to be broken. Hence now it is said:
Mark 8:36
For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? When persecution from adversaries is absent, the heart must be guarded much more vigilantly. For in times of peace, since it is allowed to live, it is also allowed to desire. Often, however, we overcome avarice, but there remains an obstacle because we guard the ways of righteousness with less custody, to perfection. For often we despise having everything, but yet we are still hindered by the use of human respect, so that we cannot yet express in voice the righteousness which we keep in mind. And we neglect the face of God for the defense of justice as much as we fear human faces against justice. But the fitting remedy is also added to this wound when the Lord says:
Mark 8:38
"For whoever confesses Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will also confess him when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels." But behold now men say to themselves: "We no longer are ashamed of the Lord and His words, because we openly confess Him with our voice." To which I reply that in this Christian populace there are some who confess Christ because they observe that all are Christians. Therefore, the voice of profession is not sufficient proof of faith, which is defended from shame by the profession of generality. And yet, let each person examine himself, so that he may truly prove himself in the confession of Christ, if he does not already feel ashamed of His name, if he has fully subdued human shame to the virtue of the mind. Indeed, in times of persecution, the faithful could feel ashamed to be stripped of their possessions, to be deposed from their dignities, to be afflicted with scourges. But in times of peace, since these things are absent from our persecutions, there is another way to show ourselves. We often fear being despised by neighbors, we disdain to tolerate verbal injuries. If perhaps a quarrel happens with a neighbor, we feel ashamed to be the first to make amends. For the carnal heart, while seeking the glory of this life, rejects humility.